Wingless: Humanity Part I
by The Alleycat Ulan
Summary: Because, as a general rule, angels have wings and aren't green, but there are always exceptions- It started with the kidnappings, but then one of their own gets taken and suddenly things are much, much more than what than what they first appeared.
1. Prologue: A Nightmare World

**Wingless: Humanity Part I**

_Because, as a general rule, angels have wings and aren't green, but there are always exceptions._

* * *

**Prologue**

**A Nightmare World**

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**

It was cold and dark and everything she'd been told nightmares were made of.

And she was _scared_.

Scared of the nothingness that pressed in around her and threatened to swallow her whole. Scared of the cold metal she could feel beneath her pressing into her back and the strong somethings that held her down on it. But most of all, she was scared of the voices and the lights that came and went, visiting her at their own leisure, poking and prodding at her to please themselves.

They never spoke to her. About her, yes, to each other, throwing their voices across her prone body as they stood by her, one on her left, one on her right.

They came at the strangest of times. Sometimes when she was sleeping, sometimes when she was awake and sometimes when she was neither. Or perhaps, it was just that her body clock was completely off and they came regularly; morning, noon, night. Anything was possible.

They were coming now, she could feel it in the air. A gentle breeze stirring the cold air that whispered a word in her ears; outside. She wanted to be there. She wanted to believe that it was a word that meant something more than simply 'just not here'. Deep somewhere in her heart that had yet to be drowned in darkness and fear, she _hoped_ it was true.

Now there were lights, dim at first, playing on the edge of her vision like the few stray rays of light that came just before the sunrise. And then they were glaring down on her, angry and bright, burning at her eyes. She clenched them shut.

Next came sound. Foot steps. Click, clack, click, clack.

She pretended they were the footfalls of puppies playing in a grassy meadows. She had a strong imagination.

For example, next she pretended the steel blade that touched her skin was the warm kiss of sunlight and the unconsciousness that soon followed was falling asleep in under a shady tree on a lazy summer's day.

* * *

_Haha so here we have the beginning of my TMNT Fanfic Trilogy; 'Humanity'. _

_Firstly, I just want to say, yes this is rather abstract, BUT it's the prologue and it's not all written like this. _

_Secondly, thank you to Phoenix (PhoenixWhite1120) and Kitty (IDreamOfFantasy) for reading over the (rather long) planning for the trilogy and giving me some very helpful feedback. _

_Thirdly, thank You for reading this. (And hopefully reviewing it? *hint hint*)_

_Also, this is my fiftieth story on ! Today is a day full of milestones for me =) Aha and what a good story for my fiftieth! Oh boy is this gonna test me as a writer or what. Haha honestly, I've very excited about the whole thing and am really happy to finally be past the planning and into the actual writing._

_Again, thanks heaps for reading, I hope you decide to keep following this story!_

_~The Alleycat Ulan _


	2. Talk of Mythical Creatures

**Chapter One**

**Talk of Mythical Creatures**

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The night was cool and aloof, punctuated only by the sound of human flesh bruising and breaking.

'So what do you think, Case'?' duck, block, kick, 'Beats a night at home with the missus?'

'I dunno, Raph,' swing, swing, connect, 'These guys aren't making enough sport. Even you could manage them on your own,'

Raph laughed, pushing away the Purple Dragon that now slumped unconscious against him. The turtle's breath left small puffs of whiteness floating in the air.

'What are you trying to say?' he challenged his friend even as he engaged another opponent, catching their puny blade between his own far superior ones and with a flick of his wrist sending it spinning through the air in neat little circles. It planted itself with finality point down in the ground at the feet of a would be assailant. The boy, for he was hardly a man, fled without further encouragement.

'That you're a bonehead,' the retort didn't make sense, but it didn't need to. That was the beauty of their friendship.

Casey parried the baseball bat that came towards his head in a messy swing and then slid it down along the golf club that was his weapon of choice for the night. The tip of the club came up as the baseball bat went down, but while the baseball bat connected with solid earth the golf club hit something much softer and tender.

The man's muffled yell was released into the night, and Raph's fist cut it short. The remaining able bodied Purple Dragons used the sudden lull in fighting as an excuse to flee.

'Bit of a low blow there,' the turtle commented, although his amusement was clear.

Casey shrugged and picked up the baseball bat, weighing it in his hands, 'He started it,' he replied, swinging the bat through the air experimentally.

'And you finished it; that's for sure,' Raph grinned as Casey slipped the bat in the bag at his back, 'Haven't you got enough of those things?'

'Nope,' Casey returned the grin, 'Never.'

Dusting off his hands Raph surveyed the scene around them; crumpled bodies decorated the otherwise deserted alleyway; adding to the morose atmosphere.

'We made short work of them, huh?' it wasn't really a question but Raph said it like one anyway.

'It almost feels too easy,' Casey replied, casting wary eyes into the shadows. Raph was already climbing the fire escape and tossed his reply back carelessly over his shoulder;

'Don't jinx it.'

* * *

To her credit Angel was coping rather well.

She brandished the crowbar she'd found with ferocity and the two men kept a respectable distance. Their comrade was propped against the wall behind them; he'd been the first one around the corner.

Now they were wary, regarding the teenager with due caution.

Their instructions were simple enough; kidnap without harming, leave no trace and do not fail.

It was a pity they'd picked the wrong target. How were they to know that Angel had taken self defence classes from a ninja?

The only thing working in their favour was the fact she hadn't screamed yet.

The older of the two rushed at her, ducking under the swing of her crowbar and seizing her by the wrists. He received a solid kick in the gut for his efforts, but after twenty years in the army it was like kicking a brick wall.

Now she screamed. Another note in the never ending song of a New York night, a scream more in fear from the realisation that these were no ordinary thugs rather than pain.

The second man came now clamping a firm hand over her mouth as together they hauled her off the dumpster she'd been standing on.

Angel bit into his hand and tasted blood. His hands fell away with a curse.

Then his body crumpled to the ground a baseball bat swinging through the air where his head had been.

The grip on her wrists relaxed too and then released as a wickedly sharp blade threatened to draw a red line across the man's neck. Angel stepped away quickly, and the man joined his companions in unconsciousness.

'Thanks,' to her surprise her voice was only breathless and not shaky like she had expected; that would come later she supposed.

'Geez Angel, is that all you can say?' Casey's nonchalant words were betrayed by the worry in his eyes as he slipped the bat into the bag at his back.

Angel shrugged hopelessly, and Raph rested a hand on her shoulder.

'Give her a break, Case' the shock still has sunk in yet,' Raph said in a rare display of sensitivity.

Casey nodded briefly, holding back his concern as best he could. He glanced around at the three unconscious bodies. 'I'll go get us a pizza and meet you on the roof,'

It wasn't at all relevant and entirely welcome, and moments later Casey was melting into the shadows, just as ninja like as his green best friend. When he was gone Angel let out a shuddering breath she hadn't known she was holding, Raph kept his three fingered grip on her shoulder steady.

It wasn't until Casey was gone for three minutes that she started crying.

* * *

Two hours later Casey and Raph were still on the roof of April's apartment building. They'd taken Angel home when the pizza had run out. Then they'd gone back to the alley where she'd been jumped only to find the three men had since disappeared.

'Who the shell were those guys?' Raph wondered aloud, absently spinning a sai through his fingers. Casey watched the faint lines of silver the blade left as it travelled through the air.

'Not Dragons, that's for sure,' he replied.

Raph nodded, 'Or Phoenixes, they were way too well trained to be ordinary street thugs,'

The Phoenixes were a new gang that had first sprung on the street about five months ago to fill the gap in the underworld left when the Foot returned to Japan. Raph often wondered about street gangs and their apparent fascination with mythical creatures; all they needed now was for some Unicorns to materialise and the strange menagerie would be complete.

'We're lucky we got them by surprise,' Casey agreed, his voice low and sombre.

Raph regarded him for a moment, clearly able to see the concern that still lingered in the man's steel grey eyes. Casey looked up, and catching his gaze, gave a lopsided smile, trying to force it into his eyes as well. It didn't quite make it.

'Maybe we're over thinking this,' he offered.

'Yeah,' Raph replied, rising to his feet and slipping his sai back into his belt. He made his way to the edge of the roof, 'Don't worry Case', I don't think Angel's gonna be wondering the streets on her own again anytime soon,'

'She better not,' Casey sounded grumpy.

Raph smirked, 'Aw, that's sweet you're getting all protective,'

Caey shot him a look, 'Get back in your hole, turtle,'

'It's a sewer, Case', not a "hole"' Raph retorted, he now stood on the edge of the roof, facing Casey.

'Good night, knucklehead.'

Raph laughed, replying with a 'Sweet dreams, bozo,' before he flipped backwards off the roof.

'Show off.'

* * *

_So what did everyone think of the first chapter? Hope is was passable =)_

_Thank you to Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee for reviewing the prologue, it sure meant a lot to me._

_I'm going to point out now that I don't like to write accents, as you may have noticed with Raph. It's just something I don't like to do/ am not really sure how to do. This may change, it may not *shrugs*_

_But that aside, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'd really love to hear from you =3_

_~The Alleycat Ulan_


	3. Early Morning Spats

**Chapter Two**

**Early Morning Spats**

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**

The night out had done him good. Raph felt his entire body tingling with exhaustion and it was refreshing. Not the bone tired ache that came after training in the dojo, but rather a "clean" feeling as though he had worked all the negatives from his body. A feeling of exhaustion that would easily be fixed with a good night's sleep.

He slipped silently into the lair, careful not to set off the new security system Don had spent the last four months agonising over.

'It's late Raph,'

Raph was only half surprised to find Leo lurking in the shadows just inside the entrance. Idly he wondered just how long the oldest brother had been waiting there for. He briefly considered asking, before he caught the look in Leo's eyes. Now that just _invited_ a smart arse reply.

'No, it's early,' Raph retorted, brushing past him and into the kitchen. Leo followed, not shaken by Raph's attitude.

'What the shell were you doing?' Leo kept his voice low, but for what reason Raph couldn't fathom. Splinter's room was on the other side of the lair and there were two solid walls between it and the kitchen; even Splinter's hearing wasn't that good. And as for the other two terrapins; Mikey slept like the dead and Don was always sleep deprived anyway, so a little more wouldn't hurt him if he wasn't still awake, which in itself was a very real possibility.

Raph withdrew a box of cereal from the cupboard without replying and Leo took it as an invitation to continue his lecture. He drew a breath. Raph cut him off before he could even start

'I know how to take care of myself, _and_-' he put extra stress on the "and" to make sure Leo wouldn't try to interrupt him, 'I think there's something weird going on,'

'You _always_ think there's something weird going on, Rapheal!' Why Leo decided to use his full name at that point Raph couldn't even begin to guess. They'd hardly even started, usually they left the whole full name thing until they'd been going for at least ten minutes.

Pointedly, Raph poured the cereal into a bowl, making the action one of defiance. The thought "_Something must be right up his ass today"_ crossed his mind. Then he put it into words and watched with increasing amusement as Leo's eyebrow ridges came together.

'Well forgive me for being concerned about the well-being of this _entire_ family!'

'You sure have a funny of showing your "concern",'

'At least I actually make an effort to have some!'

'You saying that I _don't_ care about my family?'

'I didn't say that. _You_ came up with that one on your own,'

Now Raph was pissed. He was considering throwing the bowl, cereal and all, at Leo's head and thus taking the fight to a physical level when Don's voice entered the fray.

'Guys? Can you _not_?'

The genius brother leant in doorway of the kitchen, bandana askew, bags showing under his eyes. Boy, was he going to hit the coffee hard in the morning. Well, later in the morning.

'Stay out of this, Donatello,' Leo ordered. Don regarded him for a moment, but then in a characteristic show of level headedness he shrugged it off. Raph found himself admiring Don's ability to stay calm despite the fact he obviously had had very little sleep in the past twenty-four hours.

'I'll stay out of it, Leo, if you guys keep it down,' Don reasoned, a tiny bit of exhaustion creeping into his voice. That was enough to bring out the kind older brother in Leo.

'Go back to bed, Donny. That's where we _all_ should be,' Leo directed the last part at Raph, who poured the milk into his bowl anyway.

Leo gave an overly loud sigh and Don moved out of the way to let him past. When the sound of Leo's bedroom door closing reached their ears, Don made a beeline to the coffee machine.

'Bit early for that, isn't it?' Raph asked him around a mouthful of cereal.

Don's response was to flop heavily into seat beside him and plant his forehead onto table with enough force to send ripples through the milk in Raph's bowl. Raph prodded his brother with his spoon. Don groaned. Raph was fairly certain he said "don't", but he did it again for the shell of it.

'Don't,' this time Don was audible.

Raph smirked, feeling self righteous as he said, 'That's what you get for staying awake for twenty-four hours straight,'

'Fifty-one,'

'Huh?'

'Fifty-one hours straight,' Trust Donny to feel the need to correct him over something like that.

'What the shell did you do that for?' Raph asked in genuine surprise.

'There was a bug in the heat detection and to fix it I needed to readjust the angle on the ...' Don's voice faded into mumbles, and Raph resisted the urge to poke him with the spoon again. Just.

'You awake genius?'

No response.

'Huh. Apparently not.'

Raph regarded the awkward position Don was in for a moment, "_he's gonna feel that when he wakes up". _Then he switched his attention back to the sugary sweet cereal, shovelling each spoonful greedily into his mouth. Growing up with three brothers did that to a turtle.

The coffee machine made a "ding" and Don's head shot up off the table so suddenly Raph only just managed to conceal a squeak of surprise. Within seconds Don was sipping with relish from his coffee mug and Raph could see the exhaustion falling away. He waited until the genius had drained the mug completely and made to refill it to speak.

'Hey, Donny, how hard is it to hack into police records?'

'For me or for you?'

'You,'

'Scarily easy,' Don sighed sitting himself down again, 'What did you do?'

'Nothing,' Raph replied, 'I was wondering if you could get into the kidnapping records or missing persons or something,'

Don put his mug down, his curiosity piqued, 'I could. Why?'

'Me and Casey caught some goons trying to kidnap Angel,' Raph explained, 'It's just, something about them wasn't right,'

'There's nothing "right" about kidnappers, Raph,'

'I _know_, Don. But just trust me on this one, something's up,'

Don regarded him for a long moment and then grinned, 'Okay. I'll take a look,' he drained and refilled the mug for a third time, 'After all,' a slightly evil glint appeared in his eyes, 'Seems like it could be fun,'

Raph just sighed and wondered if he should be concerned by his younger brother's apparent enjoyment of certain illegal activities.

* * *

_Hope you enjoy it, thank you to buck180 and Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee for reviewing. _

_Smiley (hope you don't mind the nickname) I use the quotation marks this way because it's the standard in Australian publishing; I'll admit I do think it looks better the other way around on FF but I'm trying to get into the habit of doing it this way haha =)_

_And the girl in the prologue? Not Angel. You'll meet the girl soon though =3_

_Oh and along that line of thought, I should point out there will be OCs. Quite a few of them. But hopefully you'll like them (or at least the ones I intend to be likeable). _

_Thanks for reading!_


	4. Driving, Findings and WouldBeRoadKill

**Chapter Three**

**Driving, Findings and Would-Be-Road-Kill**

* * *

They came at him hard and fast; Michelangelo didn't even have a chance to dodge.

Soon he was being set upon by the foam weapons he had so foolishly armed them with.

'Not the face! Not the face!' he cried, curling into himself. The children laughed and attacked with even more ferocity. Keeping up his outward play of pain, Mikey smiled inside his oversized papier mache head (one of Don's less brilliant creations); he didn't mind really: the occasional bruise was a small price to pay to bring smiles to the kids' faces.

After a few minutes the kids relented, swapping weapons for piggy backs and pony rides. Again Mikey found himself grinning as he made horse noises and pranced around the room, somehow managing to avoid tripping over toys, kids and other various potential obstacles.

When he left four hours later, he was exhausted. Betty, the kindly old woman who ran the orphanage, accompanied him to the door.

'Thank you so much Michelangelo,' she said, gripping his arm with a firmness that never failed to surprise him.

He blushed ever so slightly at her sincerity, 'It's nothing really, the least I could do,' he fumbled for fitting words and could come up with nothing better.

'It's not nothing,' Betty was resolute, but her clear blue eyes twinkled with amusement, 'You're an angel,'

Now Mikey laughed; he had never heard such a ridiculous idea. 'You couldn't be further from the truth.'

Betty laughed in response, just as Donnie pulled up. For security the windows were tinted, but she could still see the vague outline of the driver. He waved.

'I'd better go, he gets impatient if he has to wait,' Mikey explained as he hastened to the vehicle.

'Take care, Mikey,' Betty called after him. Mikey waved as Don started the engine and they began to rumble down the street. There was a thermos sitting comfortably in the drinks holder and Mikey knew without a doubt it was filled with coffee. From the look on Don's face it was one of his less brilliant days, and the often the only way he got through those was with a coffee permanently affixed to or near his persons.

Mikey wrestled the head off with only a minor struggle, 'You know, if you just let me drive myself you wouldn't have drive half way across the city to come and get me every time and could spend more time in your precious lab,'

Don spared him little more than a glance, 'If I let you drive, Michelangelo, I wouldn't be spending more time in the lab. I'd be spending my time fixing the van,'

It was an old argument.

'Pfft,' Mikey brushed it off, 'It was only a scratch,'

Don snorted, ' "Only a scratch"? The _entire door_ came off, Mikey!'

'Oh, come on, it was just that one time,'

'Well what about the time you somehow managed to somehow rip the steering wheel off and crashed through the wall of Raph's bedroom?'

'It was an _accident_. If I'd _meant_ to I would have at least tried to miss the t.v,'

Don sighed and hit his head against the (new) steering wheel. Mikey watched on in amusement.

'Eyes on the traffic, Donatello,' he reprimanded, mimicking their father perfectly.

Don, his head still resting on the steering wheel turn his face towards his younger brother, 'The traffic's not _moving, _Mikey there nothing _to_ keep an eye on,'

'Well sorry,' Mikey held his up hands in front of him as if somehow the simple gesture would testify his innocence, 'Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed,'

Don let out a sigh, 'Sorry, Mikey, I was up all night dealing with Raph and Leo,'

'Lover's spat?' Mikey quipped and was rewarded when Don smiled.

'That's not even funny,' the older turtle said but he was grinning all the same, 'No they were fighting about something,'

'Uh huh,' Mikey allowed, 'And that's unusual?'

'No,' Don lifted his head from the steering wheel and the van moved forward three metres before the traffic stopped again. He rubbed a hand over his eyes like he was physically trying to pull the tiredness from them. 'But then Raph had me hack into the police records,'

'Because that's totally legal,' Mikey couldn't resist some sort of snide comment. Don just gave him a _look_ and continued on.

'Kidnapping figures have doubled in the last four months,' again the traffic inched forward, 'And reported attempted kidnappings have gone down, so that means people are pulling it off more often than not.'

Mikey frowned slightly, 'But why haven't we heard anything about it? You know on the news or something?'

'I'm not sure, but from what I understand most of the reports are about orphans, state wardens, foster kids,' Don said as the traffic began to move a bit more quickly.

'Kids that don't have families or people who will miss them,' Mikey nodded sympathetically.

'I think Raph was right, something is going on, I just wish I could find out more,' Don sighed.

Mikey glanced out the window, 'I think that you might be about to get that wish,'

'Huh?' Don shot his younger brother a curious glance and in reply Mikey gestured out his window.

A teenage girl walked hurriedly along the street, a hood pulled up over her head and her face down. Behind her a short way trailed two men. To anyone else, they were just three ordinary people walking down an ordinary street. To trained fighters like Don and Mikey however they were much more.

The men were soldiers; they walked with confidence born of experience and there was not doubt they were intent on following the girl.

And as for the girl, her quick pace and constant glances over her shoulder told the turtles that she knew she was being followed.

'What do we do?' Mikey asked, only partially aware that he had dropped his voice to a whisper.

Don thought for a second, 'Follow them I guess, there's nothing we can do in broad daylight,'

Mikey nodded, 'I suppose, but it won't be daylight for much longer,'

'Yeah I know,' Don agreed, 'And I think they know that too.'

They trailed the small party for half an hour before the sun set and the traffic thinned. Then the girl did something stupid.

'She turned down that alley!' Mikey exclaimed, keeping up his running commentary.

'What?' Don asked, glancing about at their surroundings.

'Pull over,' Mikey insisted.

'In the next alley,' Don nodded.

Both of the brothers were aware that in this part of the city the back alleys had been built in a grid system. The alley the girl had turned and into and the one the turtles went down would both be joined by another alley that ran parallel to the road.

'Shell!' Don exclaimed slamming his foot down on the brakes. The van skidded slightly and to their surprise the girl leapt, sliding across the bonnet to land neatly on the other side. The cross section of alleyways was narrow and the van blocked it. The turtles were out through the roof hatch before the girl's pursuers had a chance to comprehend what had just happened.

Standing on the van the turtles grinned down at the men.

'Evening gentlemen,' Mikey, 'Nice night for a stroll wouldn't you say?'

Don just rolled his eyes and levelled his bo.

The men hardly hesitated as they launched their attack.

* * *

_A cliffie. hehe because I'm mean like that. sorry it's been so long ^^' Hope everyone's enjoying it though. I'm hoping to get organised and work on this story more. *fingers crossed*_

_Thanks to Eridani23, Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee and buck180 for reviewing! It's always appreciated =3 Hehe truthfully Smiley, Angel doesn't have a lot to do with the main plot, but she will be around a fair bit ^^ Also, do come to Australia one day, I'm sure you'd enjoy it!_

_Thanks for reading everyone_!


	5. Fight

**Chapter Four**

**Fight**

* * *

The fight wasn't over quickly. But then they hadn't really expected it to be.

The two men fought like the soldiers they were; strong, quick and lethal. Mikey and Don found themselves struggling to keep the men from reaching the girl. The narrow alley severely restricted their fighting, and the girl; their escape routes.

Possibly the only thing on their side was the fact that the men had yet to draw their weapons; choosing instead to fight hand to hand.

'Dammit!' Mikey yelped as a solid kick from one of the men propelled him backwards into the van, 'How do we get ourselves into these messes?'

Don grunted as he struck the van beside his brother, 'I blame you.' His mood appeared to be deteriorating quite quickly.

'It's called justice bro,' Mikey replied patiently.

'I know,' Don sighed as he raised his bo and rushed the nearest man.

Mikey flipped backwards onto the roof of the van and cast a quick glance towards the girl. Before he could look properly though a glint caught his and his gaze was drawn upwards to the roofs of the surrounding buildings. It only took him the briefest moment to register what he saw.

'Watch out!' he cried launching himself at the girl knocking her aside as the shot was fired. Using the momentum from his dive Mikey rolled and came up near a dumpster, tugging the girl with him to shelter behind it. The sniper was on the roof above them and would have difficultly seeing them in the gloom.

'Are you okay?' Mikey asked, slightly breathless as adrenaline surged through him at the near miss.

'You're bleeding,' the girl stated simply indicating Mikey's arm.

'It's just a scratch,' Mikey shrugged, looking about to get his bearings.

'Mikey!' he heard Don yell, it was a bizarre mix between concern and a request for help. Facing one of the men had been challenging; trying to fend off two was a down right struggle. Mikey couldn't see his brother because of the van, and he felt concern welling in his chest.

'We need to get to the van,' he muttered, the situation was quickly deteriorating, and now that the girl was safe running seemed like the best option.

The girl nodded understanding, 'On three?'

'Yeah,' Mikey agreed, slightly surprised by how well she was handling the whole scenario. She didn't even seem fazed by the fact that he was a giant turtle.

'Three!'

They broke cover, sprinting for the van and again Mikey allowed himself a quick moment of surprise, this time at the girl's speed; she was having no trouble keeping up with him. The moment passed and gunfire filled the air.

Mikey stumbled slightly as they neared the van, pain stinging in the vulnerable part of his right side between his shell and plastron. Then he was at the driver's door, fumbling it open and ushering the girl in ahead of him.

With one arm he pulled the door shut at the same time reaching for the other door.

'Don!' he yelled to his brother.

One man slumped unconscious against a wall. The other stood between Don and the van.

Desperately Don leapt high as the man reached for him, then the turtle came down, pushing his feet off the man's shoulders sending him stumbling forward. Don landed less than gracefully and staggered a few steps before more gunshots sounded.

Don felt their bite, his legs giving way as he looked down in dim surprise to see redness running through the crevices of his plastron.

'Don!' Mikey yelled, starting to leap from the van. He couldn't see why Don had fallen but he'd heard the shots and could put the pieces together easily enough.

The door slammed shut in his face.

'What?' Mikey cried, desperately working the handle, 'No, no, no!'

The engine revved into life of its own accord and started forward.

'What's wrong?' the girl asked, concerned by Mikey's desperation.

'Auto-pilot!' Mikey resorted to kicking the door, 'I thought he was just talking about it. I didn't realise- Damn, damn, damn!' he slumped in the seat as the girl came to stand beside him.

The van pulled quickly into a main road, the honking of horns following as it sped away.

'Damn it all!' Mikey muttered angrily, his vision blurring slightly.

* * *

Don crushed the remote control in his hand as the van disappeared down the alleyway. He could hear the man behind him rising and walking towards him.

'Dammit freak you certainly gave us a run for our money,' of all things the man sounded more amused than anything else. He came around to crouch in front of Donny, 'now just what kinda beastie might you be?' he reached out and tilted Don's head up to examine him more closely.

Don said nothing, lashing out suddenly. The man caught his fist easily, laughing as he did so.

'Now, now, calm down, it's not my job to hurt you,' he smirked then, pressing a a finger firmly to a pressure point causing the turtle to slump into unconsciousness, 'It's someone else's.'

* * *

_Now who said quicker update? =P Well here it is, I'm making a conscious effort to write more so hopefully I'll be able to keep up with regular updates. _

_Oh and it's kinda another cliffie. oops. ^^;_

_Thank you to ToRuin, artychick7, Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee, Puldoh and ChiakiAngel for reviewing! _

_Thanks for reading everyone, I hope you enjoyed it_!


	6. Aftermath and Prelude

**Chapter 5**

**Aftermath**

* * *

He felt...tired...and heavy.

Mikey was only slightly surprised to find he couldn't quite remember arriving home or anything from the past ...few days? He supposed he must've woken up at least a few times before now; he wasn't hungry or anything of the sort.

Trying to ignore the dull thudding in his side he rolled to his left, staring through blurred eyes at the Justice Force calendar that sat on his bedside table. It had been a birthday present from Don, in an attempt to help the youngest brother remember _their_ birthdays.

Damn. He could feel tears burning at the back of his eyes, and they weren't from any physical pain.

'Five days, if that's what you're wondering,' Mikey looked up in surprise; he hadn't heard the door open.

Raph placed the tray he was carrying on the table and then sat himself down on the chair that had been pulled up beside the bed. The scent of pumpkin soup reached his nostrils and Mikey perked up a little, slowly sitting up.

'Careful,' Raph commented watching him. Moving gingerly Mikey took the bowl and balanced it on his lap.

'Where're Master Splinter and Leo?' he asked between mouthfuls. He wasn't that hungry, but eating distracted him from other things. And the soup was good. Really good.

'Resting,' Raph answered simply, 'They haven't got much sleep these past few days,'

'What about you?'

Raph gave a bared his teeth in a crooked smile, 'I need a new punching bag,' he'd always had a grim sort of humour that Mikey could never quite understand.

The youngest turtle attempted a smile, but it came out crooked. His hands were trembling slightly.

'What about-?'

Raph cut him off, placing a firm hand on his arm, 'It's okay, Mikey, we'll find him,'

Mikey nodded, awkwardly swallowing the last of his soup. Raph took the bowl from him and stood up, 'Try to get some rest Mikey, I'll be back to check up you in a bit.'

Mikey settled back down and was quickly asleep. Later he was thankful he didn't dream.

* * *

The kitchen wasn't empty like it should have been. The oldest turtle was slumped in a chair at the table; an untouched box of pizza sat before him.

'How is he?'

'Sleeping, just like you should be,' Raph answered, dumping the empty bowl into the sink.

Leo gave a tired smile, 'Can't sleep,' he replied. The way he was carefully regarding the box gave Raph the impression that he couldn't eat either.

'Yeah,' Raph sank into the chair opposite, returning the tired smile with one of his own, 'Me neither.'

'We've got to find him,' Leo muttered resting his head on his hands.

'We _will_ find him,' Raph corrected, leaning back in his chair to stare at the ceiling.

When Splinter came out of his room a short time later he found the two brothers snoring softly.

* * *

She stood by the sink, submerging her hands in the warm soapy water to scrub at the plate. Blonde hair tumbled forward over her shoulder and she flicked the soap from her hand before pushing it back.

'You don't need to do the dishes, Callie,' April said coming up beside the girl.

'But,' Callie protested as April gently pushed her away from the sink.

'Casey needs to earn his keep, you know,' April winked and received an amused smile in return.

The girl the turtles had rescued gave in and allowed herself to be steered to the couch. Leaving her standing for a moment April moved to place herself between Casey and the t.v.

'Babe?' Casey asked carefully, wary of the look in April's eyes.

'You heard me,' she answered, pointing towards the kitchen, 'Wash,'

Casey didn't bother protesting; since they had volunteered to take Callie in until the mess was sorted he'd been on his best behaviour, not wanting to upset the girl. April sat comfortably in the vacated couch and patted the space beside her. Callie sat quietly and turned her attention to the t.v.

April regarded her from the corner of her eye. The girl troubled her slightly. There was something she was hiding from them. April didn't think it was something menacing, but it troubled her nevertheless.

In a way, she reminded April of the turtles; it was something in the way she held herself, ready to jump into action with only the slightest notice.

In another way, she reminded April of a soldier.

When she'd asked, Callie had said she was fifteen. A fifteen year old should _not_ remind her of a soldier.

* * *

There were lights and they were far too bright. They made Don's eyes sting and he squeezed them shut, but that wasn't enough to block out the glare. He wondered how long it would before it gave him a headache. It occurred to him briefly that a headache would be the least, and probably most welcome, of his problems.

Drawing a breathe he opened them again, blinking rapidly. The world came into focus as white spots of light faded from his vision and Don didn't like what he saw.

Humans.

More than he would have liked. Dressed in white lab coats, with clipboards and self important looks.

And he was trapped in plain white room with one glass wall and one door. All in all, the juxtaposing wasn't good.

* * *

_It kinda feels like nothing's happening right now. Or in the next few chapters either for that matter -_-; But I promise, eventually things will get rolling and the exciting stuff will happening. I really look forward to it! There's some explaining coming up before that so I guess that's something, so the trick is for me to write the 'explaining' in a way that seems 'exciting'. Frankly, it's not all that fun haha but I'm getting there. _

_So anyway, feel free to ignore my ramblings ^^'_

_Hope you enjoyed it!_

_Thank you to xXturtleloverxX, Puldoh, artychick7, Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee and ChiakiAngel for reviewing. I'll try to keep the updates coming more quickly! _


	7. Regrouping

**Chapter 6**

**Regrouping**

* * *

April sighed loudly, massaging her temples and removing the headphones. She leant back in the computer chair and regarded the clock on the screen.

Four hours.

She had managed to copy Don and hack into the police database, but that had lead to another dead end. The police weren't interested in the cases, so there was no further information available. Then she'd tried everything else she could possibly think of, she'd even googled 'orphans going missing'. April could feel herself getting frustrated. She'd been at it for four hours and nothing. Absolutely nothing. She couldn't help but think that if it was one of the others who'd been taken Don would have found them already.

'We're back,'

April looked up to see Casey and the four turtles coming through the door. They'd gone back to the alley again to see if they could find any clues. One look at their faces told her they'd been about as successful as her.

Raph and Leo collapsed onto a couch, Mikey following suit a little more carefully. Casey made his way to the fridge and helped himself to a can of coke.

'Where's Callie?' he asked before taking a long swig.

April followed his example, making her way into the kitchen. But instead of the fridge she went for the coffee machine.

'With Master Splinter,' she answered switching the machine on.

'Do you guys get the feeling that she's hiding something?' Raph's voice reached them from the lounge room.

'Yeah,' Leo agreed, 'And I'd like to know what it is,'

April and Casey made their way to the lounge and sat themselves in the couch opposite the turtles.

'She's hardly spoken the entire time she's been staying with us,' Casey said.

April nodded in agreement, 'She doesn't show it, but she's scared.'

'She's not the only one,' Mikey spoke up, all eyes turning to him, 'Those men were professionals. They knew what they were doing. They weren't your ordinary thugs, they didn't even react when they saw me and Don,' he paused briefly, significantly, 'Neither did Callie.'

* * *

Callie looked at them all in turn.

'If I tell you,' she said slowly, thinking her words over before she spoke, 'Then you'll become involved,'

'When they took our brother, we became involved,' Raph stated, crossing his arms over his chest.

'And even once you've rescued him, you'll be involved. You'll be in constant danger until this whole thing is over. All of you,' the last few words were aimed at April and Casey.

'Perhaps, it would be wise for you to leave,' Splinter said, looking at them.

'We're staying,' Casey replied, 'And we're going to help get Don back,'

Leo looked about to argue.

'We _want_ to help, Leo,' April offered, 'We want Don back as much as you do,' Leo sighed, but didn't say anything.

Callie waited a moment, gathering her thoughts before continuing, 'How much do you want to know?'

'Everything,' Mikey asserted.

'I was afraid you'd say that,' Callie sighed, 'I'll tell you what I can. There is a man known only as Mengele who is behind all the kidnappings. He operates on a global scale. He has a large number of people working for him, soldiers, spies, scientists,'

'Scientists?'

'They perform...experiments,' Callie didn't elaborate and they didn't push her, 'While I was there,' she didn't say where "there" was either, 'I met one of them, Scott, only he wasn't really one of them. He told me he was a spy, and that he was going to help us. But he got found out, and had to escape. When they couldn't find him, they turned on me..' she trailed off.

'You escaped?' Leo asked, in mild surprise.

'Yes,' Callie nodded.

'This man, Scott, you said he was a spy?' Splinter spoke up.

Callie nodded again.

'Do you know who he worked for?'

'No.'

'Do you know how we can contact him?'

Callie looked unwilling to answer.

'Callie,' Mikey, 'We need to know.'

'Yes, I know how we can contact him.'

* * *

_I'M SO SORRY! *falls to the ground and begs for forgiveness* It's been too long ='( and all I've got are my normal excuses of 'Uni is crazy', 'I'm working too much' and just RL is general for me is always a bit hectic -_-; But do not fear I haven't forgotten this fic, and to make up for my rather long absence I plan for some very speedy updates for a while (It's uni break now you see)._

_Thank so much to those of you who might still be interested in this fic, I hardly deserve such nice readers (but I can hope =P )._

_And a big thanks to anon, ChiakiAngel, Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee, and ToRuin for reviewing. And Smiley, you might just be right ^^_

_Thanks for reading~_


	8. Missed Connections

**Chapter 7**

**Missed Connections**

* * *

_Sorry I stood you up last time. I got caught up in some stuff, but everything's fine now. Ring me? Kitty._

* * *

'Kitty?' Mikey asked a little incredulously as he examined the newspaper spread before him.

Callie gave him a crooked grin, 'Something of a private joke,' she explained lightly, 'The experiments they were going to do on me involved cats,'

Mikey wanted to believe she was joking but something about her grim expression made him think otherwise. His skin crawled and he tried not to look too far into it.

'You're sure he'll be there?' Mikey tactfully tried to change the subject. Callie gave him a reassuring smile, completely aware of his goal.

'Definitely.'

* * *

The Mandarin Duck was exceptionally busy for a Tuesday night. As he struggled to follow the waiter through the maze of cramped tables, chairs and patrons, Casey found himself thinking that the real reason all the restaurant's employees were Asian wasn't for any sense of authenticity but rather due to the simple fact that they were probably the only people small enough to be able to effectively navigate through the crowded room. They came to an appropriately small table and the waiter indicated they should sit. For Casey it was exceptionally difficult, the close proximity of the other tables making it impossible for him to pull the chair anymore than 30 centimetres from the table. When he was finally comfortable the waiter handed them the menus, beaming from ear to ear. From amusement, Casey suspected.

'Sweet and sour pork, please,' April said without hesitation. Casey rolled his eyes; it was her usual order when it came to Chinese food. She kicked him under the table.

'Szechuan chicken,' Casey said sombrely, blocking April's second kick with his own leg.

Callie regarded the waier for a long moment.

'How's the cook's dog?' she asked.

The waiter made no sign she'd said anything of significance, 'As well as he's ever been,' he replied easily, gathering their menus and excusing himself.

Casey waited until he was out of eyeshot before fixing Callie with a questioning look, '"The cook's dog"?'

She gave a shrug, 'It's what he told me to say,' then she smiled a little, 'And I actually do want to know how his dog is,'

'That mutt is useless.'

April and Casey looked up in surprise at the man standing before them. In his mid thirties, he was average height with well-kept short brown hair and steady hazel eyes. Altogether, he seemed rather unremarkable.

'He won't shut up for one thing,' the man grinned, white teeth flashing as he settled himself in the remaining chair.

'Are you...?' April began, Callie was smiling so genuinely that April doubted it could be anyone else.

'Yes,' Scott answered easily. Still smiling Callie agreed, introducing Casey and April in turn.

'It's great to meet you,' Scott was saying as the food arrived, 'Thank you for taking care of her,'

'It's nothing, really,' April replied honestly.

Scott raised an eyebrow, 'I'm afraid it's not that simple, April,' he said, his eyes turning serious, 'You took Callie in, and now, just because of that, you're in serious danger. I'm not sure how much Callie has told you, but the people who are after her will stop at nothing to get her back,'

'We know,' Casey replied his voice firm, 'But they've got our friend and we want him back,'

'Your friend?' Scott asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

'Yes,' April nodded, 'He was caught when he and his brother were trying to save Callie,'

'I see,' Scott frowned and didn't offer anything else, turning his attention pointedly to his food.

'I told them you could help get him back,' Callie said quietly, looking at him searchingly.

Scott's frown deepened slightly, 'I'm not sure how much I can help,' he admitted raising his eyes to meet hers.

'Please,' April said, putting a hand in his arm, ignoring Casey's glare, 'We'll do whatever it takes to get our friend back. We just need help finding him, that's all. Just tell us where to find him,'

Scott sighed, 'Look, I'll see what I can do,' he rubbed a hand through his hair, unwilling to raise their hopes too much, 'I can't make any promises though.'

* * *

'"I'll see what I can do?" Raph looked fit to burst, 'You go out of your way to have this top secret meeting with him and all he says is "_I'll see what I can do?" _He slammed his fist down on the table and slumped back in a huff.

'You've got to understand, Raph, we're asking him to put himself in danger to help complete strangers,' April reasoned, hoping to placate the temperamental turtle. After meeting with Scott, they'd made their way to the turtles' lair to let them know how things had gone. The brothers were not taking it well.

'Does he realise that the reason Don got caught was because _he_ was rescuing a complete stranger?' Leo's words were controlled and even, but April could him struggling to keep his own temper in check. Mikey looked between his brothers, his own anger smouldering gently.

'Scott will come through,' Callie said firmly, 'He just needs time to think things over.'

'It seems pretty straight forward if you ask me,' Casey said tersely, arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen, 'He owes us one, it shouldn't be that hard to figure out.'

Callie shook her head, 'Not really,' she replied, 'You guys might have saved me, but that only means that I'm in debt to you and I'm staying to help. This doesn't really have anything to do with Scott,'

'Then _why_ did you suggest we go to him for help?' Raph asked. He was really struggling to keep a lid on his temper and they could all see it.

'Because I think he will help us,' Callie replied evenly, 'I'm just saying that we can't hold it against him if he decides not to,'

Raph looked about ready to argue the point further when Splinter held up a hand for silence. Up until now he'd been following the conversation in silence.

'I think that is enough for tonight,' he said calmly, 'All these words are not getting us anywhere. It is better to rest and save our energy, than to argue amongst ourselves,' He looked at each of his sons in turn and then to April, Casey and Callie.

'You're right master Splinter,' April nodded, 'It is time for bed,'

Raph stood and stalked from the room, stopping only to clap Casey on the shoulder in thanks on the way past. Mikey felt his anger dissipate and looked to Callie, 'Thanks for trying,' he said in earnest, Leo nodding in agreement.

* * *

It was dark by the time Scott got home that night. The locked jammed as usual the first time he tried, and he struggled to keep from dropping the bags of groceries. With an encouraging kick the door opened on the second try. Kenro watched Scott stumble through the door with mild amusement. Scott shot him a half hearted glare.

'You could have helped.'

The wolf stood and walking towards the door nudged it shut, his metal paw making a strange click on the floorboard that contrasted with the soft padding noise of his other flesh paws.

'I am helping,' the wolf then stood back on his hind legs, using a front paw to flip the light switch on. He turned to Scott, who had dumped the groceries on the table, before slumping onto a stool.

'So was it her?' the wolf asked.

'Yeah,' Scott sighed. The cyborg wolf moved closer, his brown eye shining with intelligence, his other red one just glowing dimly as it always did.

'And?' Kenro prompted.

Scott turned his head to regard his friend thoughtfully, 'Things are getting complicated.'

'How complicated?'

'Rescue mission.'

Kenro made a noise deep in the back of his throat that could have meant anything. 'Who needs rescuing?'

'One of her rescuers apparently,' Scott's face was unreadable and Kenro knew exactly what that look meant. A rescue mission during such a critical time could be disastrous and Kenro reminded him as much.

'Yeah,' Scott conceded, 'but I get the feeling they'll try to get him back whether or not we help them.'

'Which would also be not so great,' Kenro agreed, he looked at Scott sceptically for a moment. 'You're going to do it anyway, aren't you?'

'I don't think there's much of a choice,' Scott shrugged, and Kenro rolled his eyes, a very human action that looked comically out of place on his canine features.

'And you wonder why the Circle doesn't like you.'

* * *

_Did I say speedy? Er...Regardless this is a bit quicker than normal for me ^^;_

_Thanks to See, Smile-I'mTheEndOfAllThatYouSee, I Love Kittens Too And BubblyShell22 for reviewing!_

_This chapter's a littler longer, and finally things are starting to get rolling. Thanks for much for reading~_


	9. Action Plan

**Chapter 8**

**Action Plan**

* * *

'I guess this is what it feels like to be kidnapped?' Scott directed the question to his left, where he thought Callie was, but it was hard to tell through the blindfold.

'Somewhat.' Her voice answered from the right and slightly in front of him. So it was April to his left then. Casey's hand on his shoulder was steering him to the right, and Scott allowed himself to be guided in what he could only assume was the correct direction.

'So your friends live in the sewer?' Scott grimaced, trying to ignore the slippery feeling of the ground beneath his feet. He was actively trying not to remind himself he was walking through the infamous New York City sewers.

'It works for them,' April replied with a shrug Scott couldn't see.

'Good for them,' Kenro sniffed, his snout crinkling from the smell. 'I can't say I share their feelings.' He was walking close to Callie, pressed against her leg with her hand on his head for guidance.

'Don't worry it's not that much further,' Callie assured them, leading them around another bend. She came to a stop in front on the main entrance into the turtles' den and waited for it to open. 'Mind your step,' she warned leading them forward once again. Scott could feel the change in the air as he stepped forward cautiously, heeding Callie's warning.

'You can take it off now,' Casey said easily, tapping him on the shoulder before moving away. Reaching back and slipping the blindfold from his head, Scott blinked slowly his eyes adjusting to the light. The first thing he could properly focus on was a pair of brown eyes framed by a red bandana set in a green face glaring at him.

'A turtle?' Scott hadn't been prepared or fairly warned, and he couldn't help a small exclamation of surprise. He quickly fought back his initial shock, sensing that this, like the blindfolds, was a test.

'Three of them,' Kenro added, shaking his head as Callie removed his blinder. It was true, two others stood close by, one sporting a blue bandana and the other orange. All of them were armed.

'We _can_ talk,' the one with the red bandana said pointedly, crossing his arms over his chest. Well-muscled and poised ready to jump him should the need arise, Scott observed. The bandanas and weapons weren't just for show then.

'Sorry,' Scott said with a tone that while carrying the appropriate amount of sincerity also gave no indication of intimidation.

The turtle with an orange bandana laughed, 'Just you wait 'til you meet our _father_.'

Scott forced a laugh, reminding himself that he had probably seen stranger things than human sized bipedal ninja turtles. He couldn't think of any examples right away, but he wasn't going to dwell on that.

Callie decided to intercede. 'Scott Rendel, Kenro this is Leo, Raph and Mikey,' she said quickly indicating each of the turtles in turn. 'It was their brother, Donatello, who was caught.'

'I see,' Scott said in an even tone.

'Are you sure this is the right guy?' Raph shot at Callie. 'I thought you said he was smart.'

'I am,' Scott assured him. 'It's just I was expecting humans, not turtles.'

'And that's a problem is it?' Raph asked sharply, turning to fix Scott with a temperamental glare. Kenro gave a soft growl of warning, fixing Raph with an even gaze.

'No,' Scott answered steadily to set them both at ease. 'It just changes the plan a little.'

Leo stepped forward and put a firm hand on Raph's arm to silence him, 'What plan?' He asked, his voice carrying the authority Scott had expected it to. Despite Raph's bravado he was clearly not the leader of the little clan.

Scott flashed straight white teeth in a broad grin. 'The plan to save Donatello, of course.'

* * *

To his credit, Scott took Master Splinter's appearance in stride and wasted no time getting down to business. Before they'd left he'd talked things over with Kenro, deciding what he was going to tell Callie's friends, as well as what he wasn't. Now that all of them had settled in the lounge room, Scott began.

'I work for an organisation known as The Circle,' Scott said. 'The soldiers who took your brother work for a man we call Mengele. He's a nasty piece of work that we've been working to catch for sometime now.'

'What does he do, exactly?' Mikey interrupted, ignoring Leo's elbow jabbing into his side.

'He's trying to create the ultimate soldier, mostly through genetic experimentation,' Scott answered easily, although he could see the brothers shifted uncomfortably at the mention of genetic experiments. 'I've consulted with the intelligence network and we know where they're keeping your brother, along with most of the orphans. We're planning a raid this Friday,' Scott looked at them all in turn and flashed another grin, 'and you're all welcome to come along.'

Raph got to his feet, followed quickly by Mikey. 'Then what are we waiting for?' Raph asked spinning his sais easily in his hands. He gave Scott a grin of his own, and inwardly Scott winced at the menace behind the smile.

'Not so fast my sons,' Splinter spoke up, fixing the two turtles with a steady gaze until they returned to their seats. Then he switched his gaze to Scott and Kenro, 'There is more that you are not telling us. I will not push you for further details because I know you will not supply them. However I want to know why you are so willing to help us.'

Scott regarded the old rat for a moment, ignoring his initial instinct to lie blatantly. 'We're hoping that if we help you now, then you'll help us in the future.' He answered instead with a simple shrug, omitting the fact that had been the intention _before_ he'd found out about their mutations.

'In what way exactly?' Leo asked, raising an eyebrow ridge. Somehow Scott could see a similarity between the bearing of the oldest turtle and the rat he called his father.

'We need people, I use the phrase loosely, people who can fight, who can sneak, who can keep secrets-'

'You need soldiers,' Splinter interrupted, folding his hands in front of himself.

Scott met his gaze steadily. 'Yes.' He felt the tension in the room rise at this. 'I won't lie to you. We need people to aide our fight. Mengele is evil. We must defeat him and for that we need soldiers. It's that simple.'

'That's lovely,' Raph drawled. 'But when you're done being high and mighty, what's in it for you two?' There was a challenge in his words and Kenro rose to meet it.

'I want my mate and cubs back,' the wolf growled. 'I don't want them to suffer as I did.' He lifted his metal paw in emphasise.

Raph lowered his glare uncomfortably, and Mikey spoke up instead. 'And you?' he asked Scott quietly.

Scott's eyes and grin were dark. 'Revenge.'

The lights in the lair were dim and the atmosphere was heavy after Scott and Kenro had left with April, Casey and Callie. Scott had agreed to let the turtles and Splinter think the matter over for the night and let Scott know their decision the following morning. The turtles and their father remained in the lounge room, cold pizza from the night before serving as their dinner. Mikey, still recovering from his injuries, had dozed off slumped against Raph's shoulder.

'My sons, I do not know where this path is taking us,' Splinter sighed, setting his teacup down and looking to his two oldest sons. 'But if is the only way we can rescue Donatello, then it is the only path we have.' His expression became troubled as he continued, 'I don't want the lives of soldiers for my sons, but I know that even if I asked for you not to do this, you would disobey me. So I can only give you my blessings and my continued guidance.'

Leo and Raph exchanged glances, Raph shifting protectively against Mikey causing him to stir.

'Father, this is the fate we have been dealt,' Leo replied. 'And perhaps it is the higher purpose I have always felt we were born for.' Raph nodded in grim agreement.

'I don't care what we have to do if it means we can get Don back,' Raph added, his eyes serious.

Nodding Splinter regarded his sons with a mixture of pride and concern.

'I want to do this,' Mikey's voice was groggy with sleep, as he sat up. 'But not just for Don. The kids need us too, we can help stop this stuff that happening to them and we should.'

Scott flipped open his paper on Saturday morning.

_I'll be there, Kitty._

* * *

_Thank you Smiley for your review ^^_


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